She's The Dude
by iheartfinchel0
Summary: AU: Marley Rose wants to prove to her friends that she can be a versatile actress, so she enrolls herself into the McKinley School For Boys. She just didn't plan on falling for her roommate, Jake Puckerman, in the process. Loosely based off the movie, She's The Man, and William Shakespeare's play, Twelfth Night.
1. The Plan

"Marley, I think you need to give this actress thing a rest." Wade "Unique" Adams placed a concerned hand on her best friend Marley Rose's shoulder. "You're becoming obsessed."

"I am not!" Marley protested. "How is wanting to be an actress a bad thing?"

"You're wearing a blond wig and a fairy costume," Unique pointed out. "I think it's getting a little out of hand."

"I'm practicing for any upcoming roles I might have in the future. It's always good to prepare." Marley defended. "And besides, I want to be a versatile actress, and to do that, I need to master a whole bunch of roles."

"You're taking it a bit too extreme, though," Marley's other best friend Brittany S. Pierce explained.

Marley rolled her eyes. "No I'm not. You guys just don't understand. I will be an actress. I'll prove it to you."

Unique snorted. "Oh? And how are you going to do that?"

Marley paused to think. "You'll see," she said as she sauntered out of her room, leaving Brittany and Unique staring at her, both totally speechless.

* * *

"You're going to be a boy?!" Unique screeched.

"Yep." Marley shrugged as if it were no big deal.

"And you actually think people are going to believe you?"

"Uh huh."

"Girl, please." Unique shook her head. "You are like the prettiest girl I've ever met. Nobody is ever going to believe you are a boy."

"Wait, I'm confused." Brittany frowned. "You're just going to put on a wig and boy clothes and walk around town? Everyone will know it's you."

"No, Britt. I found this school an hour away from here in Lima called the McKinley School For Boys. I'm going to enroll there."

"I thought you said you weren't going to go to college," Brittany said. "You said you were going to go straight to LA or New York."

Marley sighed heavily. "Look, this will probably be only temporary. I mean, unless I can fool everyone that I really am a boy, once my cover gets blown, I'll be out. I know you guys probably won't understand, but I want to prove to people that I can be a versatile actress. And if that means I have to pose as a boy for however long as possible, then so be it."

"It's just...crazy," Unique said, "but, if you really want to do it, I'll help."

"Really?" Marley smiled brightly at her friend.

"Me too," Brittany added. "I can keep a secret."

Unique looked at the ditzy blonde in confusion. "No you can't," she blatantly said.

"Well I'll try my hardest."

"You guys are the best." Marley pulled her friends into a three-way hug.

"Let's just hope this works," Unique mumbled. She didn't have a good feeling about it.

* * *

Dean Figgins looked at Marley once again. He silently scanned her application, and glanced over at Unique, who decided to ditch the drag outfit for this more formal occasion. "Your application is very nice, Matthew" (Brittany had chosen that name for Marley to use), "but we need a parent or guardian to officially admit you here," Figgins finally spoke.

Marley nervously looked over to Unique, silently begging her to say something.

"We, uh, don't have parents," Unique lied. "I'm her older brother. We live in a foster home, and our foster parents are hardly ever there."

"I see," Figgins said, not too convinced. Nevertheless, he handed Unique a form. "Sign here," he instructed.

Unique did as he said, and handed the form back to the Dean.

"Welcome to the McKinley School For Boys, Matthew." Figgins got up and shook Marley's hand. "It's a pleasure to have you."

"Thank you, sir," Marley made her voice as deep as possible. It must have sounded convincing enough, because Figgins smiled and handed her a schedule.

"Here is where all your classes are, and your dorm room," he said.

"It's a single dorm, as we requested, right?" Unique asked. Marley was so thankful she was here. She definitely needed her best friend here for support. And also to ask all the questions so Marley didn't need to speak in her not-so-convincing boy voice too much.

"Unfortunately, there are no single rooms left, so you will be sharing. That isn't a problem, right?"

"Um, no. Of course not," Marley said in her deep voice again. On the inside, though, she was panicking. Now she would have to sleep in her wig and boy clothes every night, which was something she was definitely not happy about. She was starting to think this was a very bad idea. All the things she hadn't thought of earlier flew through her mind. _How would she take a shower when a bunch of guys would be in the shower room at the same time? What if her roommate finds out her secret_? Luckily, Unique taught her some of the lingo that boys used, what activities boys liked to do, and how how to properly walk like a boy. She could do this. How hard could it be, right?

* * *

**So, do you like it so far? Sorry it's so short, but I wanted the first chapter to be kind of an intro into the story to get you guys interested. The chapters will be longer though, don't worry. I got the idea a couple weeks ago when I watched the movie, She's The Man. I thought it would make such a cute Jarley story. Stay tuned for the next chapter!**

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or She's The Man**_


	2. Just One Of The Guys

After saying goodbye to Unique, Marley made her way across the campus to her new dorm room. It was kind of scary, being in such a huge place where you don't know anyone. The one thing she really wanted to do was call her mom. The only problem was that her mom didn't even know she was here. Marley had told her that she was in LA looking at colleges.

After half an hour of exploring the campus, Marley finally found her room. She quietly opened the door, praying that no one was in there yet. Unfortunately, her prayers weren't answered, because the first thing she saw when she walked into the room was a very attractive boy. Marley cleared her throat. "Um, hi."

The boy looked up and smiled. "Sup dude. I'm Jake. Jake Puckerman." He reached out to fist pump her.

"Matthew Rose," Marley said as her fist came into contact with his. _Why couldn't boys just shake hands normally?_ she thought.

"You could take that bed," Jake said, pointing to a bed by the window.

"Cool." Marley nodded. _So far so good._

"Hey, wanna come shoot some hoops with me and some friends?" Jake asked.

_Shoot some hoops...Shoot some hoops...Oh right! Basketball!_ "Yeah, sure," Marley said. She followed Jake out the door, copying his laid-back boyish movements.

They got to the basketball court and Marley saw some unfamiliar faces-most likely Jake's friends.

"Matthew, this is Sam Evans, Mike Chang, and Ryder Lynn," Jake introduced. "Guys, this is my new roommate, Matthew Rose."

"Sup man." Sam nodded.

"Sup," Marley said. It sounded so weird coming from her mouth. _Do all guys say 'sup'?_ "So, uh, how do you guys all know each other?"

"We were friends from high school," Mike said.

Marley nodded. "Cool." Remembering what Unique told her about how most boys are girl-crazy, she said, "So, there are seriously no girls here?"

"No. Sucks right?" Ryder said. "But our sister school is like five minutes away from here, so it's not all that bad."

"Yeah, my girlfriend Tina goes there."

"So does my girlfriend, Mercedes," Sam added.

"What about you? Do you have a girlfriend?" Marley said to Jake before she could stop herself. She mentally slapped herself. Why would she say something like that?

Jake shook his head. "Nope. No girlfriend."

"Me neither," Marley said.

"So, Matthew." Ryder passed the basketball to Marley. "What do you want to after this?"

"After college you mean?" Marley took the ball and threw it into the air. It went straight into the net. She stood there speechless. Marley had never even played basketball before.

"Yeah. Like what do you wanna do with your life and stuff?"

"I want to be an actre-actor." Marley caught herself. "I want to be an actor."

"Nice," Mike said, dribbling the ball. "My parents are making me become a doctor." He made a sour face.

"That's not what you want?"

"No. My real dream is to become a dancer."

"Loser!" Ryder fake-coughed.

"Shut up, man!" Mike shot back. "At least I know what I want to do. You're still clueless."

"Alright guys, stop fighting," Jake said. "Let's just play basketball."

Marley grinned as she watched the four boys play, only stepping in on a couple occasions to steal the ball. They all believed she was a boy. This was actually going to work.

* * *

"So, were you like the popular guy in high school, or were you a nerd?" Jake asked a couple hours later. He and Marley were lounging in their dorm, getting to know each other.

"Um, I was kind of in the middle," Marley said. "What about you?"

"I was pretty popular," Jake said. "I was on all the sports teams, so that made me popular. But that doesn't really matter here anymore."

"It doesn't?" Marley sat up to look at him.

"No, dude. I mean, yeah, the jocks are like the maid guys around campus, but everybody's got a group of friends. "From what I've heard, there isn't much bullying or anything here."

"Huh. Wasn't like that in high school," Marley said.

"You were bullied a lot?"

Marley nodded. "Yeah. Occasionally."

"Sorry, dude."

Marley looked up and stared straight into Jake's eyes. _Ugh, why did he have to be so cute?_ She could just get lost in his chocolate brown eyes.

Jake, noticing her staring, awkwardly laughed and quickly looked away. "So, me and the guys are going to go to the park tomorrow to see some of the McKinley girls. Do you wanna come with us?"

"Uh, yeah sure," Marley said. "Sounds cool. Maybe I can find a girlfriend or something." She made sure to emphasize on the word 'girlfriend'.

Jake gave her a funny look. "Yeah, okay." He ended the conversation by turning his laptop and putting his earphones in.

Marley laid back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. She really hoped none of the McKinley girls would realize that she was a girl. She knew this was going to be hard.

* * *

The next day, Marley and the guys walked to the nearby park and waited for the girls to show.

"I'm so excited to see Tina," Mike said excitedly.

"How long have you guys been together?" Marley asked in her boy voice. She almost forgot to speak that way when she first got up. It was kind of annoying.

"Since sophomore year of high school," Mike said.

"Whoa, seriously?" Marley said, totally forgetting to speak in a low voice. The four other boys just stared at her.

"I mean, uh, that's tight dude," Marley said, making her voice as low and gravelly as possible.

"How can you make your voice sound so high?" Sam asked.

"I, uh, used to imitate my little sister all the time, and I used a high voice a lot." _Nice save._

"Oh, okay," Sam said.

"Look, there they are!" Mike pointed to a small group of girls who were making their way towards them.

"Mike!" Tina ran ahead and jumped into the Asian boy's arms.

Mercedes, who was not far behind, ran up to Sam and gave him a huge hug and a kiss. Once they broke apart, Mercedes introduced the other girls.

"Guys, this is Sugar," she said, pointing to a brunette with a crazy neon pink dress. "And this is-"

"I'm Kitty," the other girl interrupted.

"Sup," the guys all said in unison.

"You guys look like a boyband," Sugar spoke up.

Jake laughed. "Um, thank you?"

Ryder took the opportunity to introduce himself to Kitty. "Hey," he said smoothly. "The name's Ryder."

Marley didn't even notice anyone was near her until she heard Sugar speak behind her. "You're like, really cute," she said.

"T-Thanks," Marley said. "I'm Matthew."

Sugar stroked Marley's shoulder. "That's hot."

Marley stood there awkwardly. "Um..." _This was so weird._

"So, wanna go out with me some time?" Sugar whispered into Marley's ear seductively.

Marley swallowed. "Like a date?"

"Totally."

"Um, okay." Marley felt incredibly weird saying yes to going out with another girl, but at least Sugar believed that she wasn't one. She just hoped she wouldn't have to kiss Sugar or anything. No way.

* * *

"So, you got a date with Sugar?" Jake asked later that night back in the dorm.

"Yeah. She seems...nice."

"She seemed kind of intense from what I saw," Jake chuckled.

Marley couldn't help but stare at Jake when he laughed. His smile was so cute. _No_, she mentally scolded herself. She couldn't have Jake think she was into him. That would just make things weird. Really weird.

"And the way she dressed was kind of odd," Jake added.

"Really? I thought it was so cute," Marley said in her normal voice. _Big mistake._

"Whoa, dude, stop doing that. It's creepy," Jake said.

"Uh, sorry. But I mean, um, I'm sure other girls would find what she was wearing cute. Not me though. 'Cause that's weird."

Jake gave her a strange look. "I'll be right back. I gotta go to the bathroom." He walked out the door quickly.

Marley groaned loudly and fell back onto her bed, screaming into her pillow. Great. Now she probably won't be having anymore alone time with Jake. She was sure that now he thought she was a freak.

This sucked.

* * *

**I thought it would probably be less confusing if I just referred to Marley as Marley and not Matthew. As the chapters progress, they will get longer, but I'm still kind of introducing everyone and setting the storylines up in this chapter, which is why it's not as long as I would have liked it to be. Anyways, let me know what you thought of this chapter and stay tuned for the next one.**


	3. The Problem With Mom

"So, what do you guys think about Matthew?" Jake asked his three friends. He, Mike, Sam, and Ryder were all hanging out in Ryder and Sam's dorm room.

"He's cool," Mike said.

"Yeah, but don't you guys think there's something a little off about him?"

"Dude, we've only known him a week," Sam said. "And he seems pretty normal."

Jake shook his head. "I don't know, man, there's just something not right about him."

"That's mean, dude," Ryder uttered. "What happened to not judging people?"

"I'm not judging him, I'm just stating my opinion," Jake said.

"Speaking of Matthew, where is he?" Mike spoke up.

"He was in our room when I left. He was talking on the phone with someone."

"His girlfriend?" Ryder raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know, man. He told me he doesn't have a girlfriend. And by all the looks he's given me, I'm not even sure he's into girls." Jake shrugged.

"You think he's gay?" Sam asked.

"Well I have caught him staring at me a couple times."

Mike laughed. "That doesn't mean he's gay."

"Why does it matter anyway? It's not like it's a big deal if he is gay," Ryder said.

"Yeah, I know, but _I'm_ the one who has to share a room with him," Jake pointed out.

"Just don't make a big deal out of it, Jake," Sam advised. "And _don't_ ask him if he is gay or not. It's his choice to tell you or not."

"Yeah yeah I know." Jake rolled his eyes. "I just hope he stops with the staring. It's getting really creepy."

* * *

"Oh my god, Unique, you should see him. He's so cute!" Marley fawned over the phone.

"Girl, you can not be thinking he's cute," Unique said.

"Why not?"

"Because he thinks you're a dude. If he catches you staring at him, he's going to think something's up."

"I think he might already be thinking that." Marley frowned.

"What did you do now?" Marley could almost see Unique rolling her eyes on the other line.

"I accidentally forgot to use my guy voice for a second, and it freaked him out," Marley said. "But I don't think he suspected anything."

"You better hope not, because you've only been there a week."

"Yeah, I know."

Unique decided it was a good time to change the subject. "So, how are your classes?"

"They're okay. It's a lot harder than high school, though. At least I'm learning stuff."

"Yeah, you wouldn't be if you went straight to LA after high school," Unique said.

"Yeah yeah, whatever." Marley rolled her eyes.

"So where's Jake now?" Unique asked.

"He's hanging out with his friends. The one's I told you about."

"And they didn't invite you?"

Marley sighed. "Jake saw that I was on the phone so I guess he didn't want to bother me. Isn't that sweet?" She gushed.

"Oh Marley," Unique tsked.

"Oooh, I have to go, Unique. I hear Jake talking to someone outside the door. Talk to you later!" She hung up the phone before Unique could get another word in.

As Jake walked in the door, Marley brought her hands to her hair to give it a little fluff when she remembered that she was wearing a short wig. _Stupid_, Marley thought to herself.

"Hey dude," Jake said, giving Marley an uneasy smile.

"Hey." Marley nodded. "How are the guys?"

"They're good."

"Cool. I should, um, get ready for my date with Sugar."

"That's tonight?"

"Uh huh."

Jake turned to look at Marley. "So you like her?"

"Yeah, she seems nice." Marley shrugged.

"But are you _attracted_ to her?"

"Um, I don't know. She's pretty hot," Marley said, the words sounding so weird coming out of her mouth.

Jake continued to look at Marley in that strange way. She wished he would stop. "Are _you_ attracted to her?" She asked him.

Jake made a face. "No, she's not my type."

_Then what is your type?_ Marley wanted to ask so badly. "Yeah, she's not really my type either, but I didn't want to be mean to her," she decided to say.

"So what's your type?" Jake asked. _Well, I guess there was no problem in me asking him if it was okay for him to ask me_, Marley thought to herself. She quickly thought of a lie to tell Jake.

"Uh, my last girlfriend was a blonde."

"I'm not really into blondes," Jake said. "I prefer brunettes."

Marley felt butterflies in her stomach. There was a slight chance that he could actually be into her! But then she remembered that she was technically a boy, and Jake was straight.

Marley inaudibly sighed. Why did her roommate have to be so cute?

* * *

"...So then, I asked my daddy for a pony, and he got it for me. She's living in Texas or something now. I named her Princess. Isn't that adorable?" Sugar kept blabbering about how her daddy buys her everything she wants.

"Yeah, that's so adorable," Marley said, trying as hard as she could to hide her lack of enthusiasm. She and Sugar were almost an hour into their date, and Sugar hadn't stopped talking since it started.

"Daddy also bought me a car when I was thirteen, but I never really liked it because it was the wrong shade of blue. It never went with any of my outfits," Sugar said.

Marley couldn't believe this girl. No guy would ever want to date her. They would just use the poor girl for her money.

"Look Sugar." Marley took a deep breath. "You're awesome, but I don't think I'm the right guy for you," she said.

For the first time in her life most likely, Sugar was speechless.

"Please don't be sad, but I think you can find someone much better. Someone who also has a lot of money so you guys can at least have something in common," Marley said.

"You like someone else," Sugar stated. "I can tell."

Marley decided it wasn't even worth it to lie. "Yeah, I do."

"Well I hope she makes you happy," Sugar said. She didn't even look mad.

"Thanks. I hope we can still be friends," Marley said, knowing it was probably the most cliché line in history.

"Yeah, definitely." Sugar nodded as she stood up and quietly left the restaurant without another word.

_Well that was easier than expected_, Marley thought. She paid for her meal and headed back to her dorm. She wanted for than anything to take her wig off and take a nice, hot shower, but she knew she would have to wait until the middle of the night, when no one was in the shower room to do so.

As Marley walked down the hall, she heard someone playing on a guitar. She followed the beautiful sound that led her straight to her room. She opened the door and immediately saw Jake strumming away, singing a bit to the music.

"I didn't know you played guitar," Marley spoke up, startling Jake a little.

"Whoa, dude, I didn't see you come in." Jake put down his guitar. "So how was your date with Sugar?"

"Eh, didn't go so well. All she did was talk about how rich she is," Marley laughed.

"Sorry, bro." Jake put a sympathetic hand on Marley's shoulder, causing her to blush furiously.

"So, what song were you playing?" Marley asked. "I didn't recognize it."

"Oh, it's just a little something I wrote." Jake waved it off like it was no big deal.

_He writes songs too? Is there anything wrong with him?_ Marley wondered.

"Do you play?" Jake asked, snapping Marley out of her thoughts.

"Nah. I mostly sing," she said without thinking.

"Really?" Jake looked genuinely interested. "Can I hear?"

"Uh..." Marley knew she could sing amazingly as a girl, but she did not know how she would sound as a boy. "Maybe sometime."

"Cool. Ryder plays the drums and Sam plays guitar too, so maybe we can form a little band or something," Jake said.

"Awesome." Marley gave him a weak smile. She would have to remember to practice her boy singing voice soon.

* * *

Marley quietly tiptoed into the boys shower room at one in the morning, almost crying out in relief when she found it was empty. She slowly took her wig off, wiggled out of her t-shirt and shorts, and stepped into the hot shower. She took her hands to her head and stroked her long, silky hair, promising to never take it for granted again.

As she washed her body, Marley began singing to herself. She missed using her girly voice so much; it was such a struggle to always speak in such a low, gravelly tone.

Marley stayed in that shower until all the hot water ran out. When it finally did after an hour, she put her wig and clothes back on, tiptoed back into the room, and climbed into her bed, drifting off into a nice, peaceful sleep.

* * *

"So where were you last night?" Jake asked Marley while he finished getting dressed the next morning. "I woke up at like 1:30 in the morning and didn't see you in your bed."

Marley's eyes widened as she tried to come up with a good excuse. "I was, uh, in the bathroom."

"For over an hour?" Jake raised an eyebrow.

"I, uh, had a stomach ache."

"Okay, okay, I don't need to know the details." Jake laughed. "Get dressed. We're heading out to meet the guys in five minutes."

"Okay, I'll be right back." Marley grabbed her clothes and ran to the bathroom.

Once she returned, she followed Jake out the door to meet the other guys, ready to take on the day.

* * *

"Girl, I cannot believe you went a whole month without anyone realizing you're not a boy," Unique said over the phone a couple weeks later. "You're a better actress than I thought."

"I told you," Marley said smugly. "Now let me talk to Brittany. I haven't spoke to her in forever."

"Hey Marles!" Brittany shouted on the other line.

"Hey Britt. How are you?" Marley missed her friends so much.

"I'm good, but your mom called me a couple days ago," Brittany said, her tone turning serious. "She said she couldn't get ahold of you and wanted to know how LA is."

"What did you say?"

"Um..." Brittany said in a panicked voice. "You know I don't do good under pressure, right?"

"Brittany, what did you say to my mom?"

"I told her that you went to the McKinley School for Girls," Brittany said. "I panicked, and that was the only thing I could think of at the time."

"Okay, that's not that bad. It's kind of half telling the truth, right?"

"Marley, there's more," Brittany whispered.

"What?"

"She said she wants to visit you. She wants to see how you're doing, and how college is like."

Marley's body instantly filled up with dread. This couldn't be happening. Everything had been going so smoothly. "W-When is she coming?"

"Saturday," Brittany sighed. "Apparently there's a carnival thing going on with both schools and there are going to be a bunch of games, and food, and prizes, and it actually sounds really fun," Brittany drifted off topic. "Me and Unique are gonna come."

"Then you guys have to help me," Marley pleaded. "If Jake and the other guys see me as Marley, they're going to know something's up."

"Just tell them that Matthew has a twin sister," Brittany suggested.

"But how am I going to be able to be at two places at once?"

"I don't have all the answers, Marley!" Brittany shouted.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, Britt. I'll think of something."

"Okay. We'll see you Saturday," Brittany said.

"Bye!" Unique shouted over Brittany.

"Bye guys," Marley said before hanging up. She put her phone on the desk and fell onto her bed, landing with a thump. She had three days to think of a plan. Hopefully this would work.

* * *

Later that night after Marley showered, she climbed back into bed. She checked her clock. It was already three in the morning. She was way too tired to put her wig on, so she set her alarm clock to ten minutes before Jake usually woke up to turn herself back into a boy, and fell back asleep.

* * *

Jake usually was one to sleep in until 8 o'clock on weekdays, but on this particular morning, he found himself waking up a little earlier than he would have liked. He checked his phone and groaned. It was only 7:15. He got up and walked over to his roommate's bed, hoping he would be up soon.

"Hey, dude." He nudged Matthew. "Get up."

After getting no answer, Jake tried the next thing to wake Matthew up, which happened to be ripping the covers off of him. As he did, he jumped back and shouted loudly.

"Holy shit, you're a girl!"

* * *

**Ooooh, didn't see that one coming, huh? Haha. Stay tuned! Oh, and just so you know, I'm in New Jersey now on vacation and might not be able to update for a little while. I'm not sure. If I have time, I will, but it might not be for another week and a half-2 weeks or so. **


	4. Suspicious

**Hey guys. You all know what happened so I don't even need to say it. I don't even think I can say or write it without bursting into tears. I thought about taking a little break from writing, but I really didn't want to disappoint you guys. I know you've been waiting for an update for a while. And I realized that writing kind of gave an escape for me. While I wrote this chapter, I didn't think about Cory. I thought about the cuteness and happiness that is Jarley, and it really helped. Sorry for the super long author's note, I just wanted you guys to know that I'm not giving up on this story. I know it's been really hard on all of us. I love you all. So without getting off track again, here's the next chapter.**

Marley's eyes shot open when she felt the warmness of her blanket being ripped away from her body. She found Jake looking equally as startled.

"Holy shit, you're a girl!"

_Oh my god_. Marley brought her hands to her head and felt her long wavy hair, not tucked in her wig as it should have been. Then it hit her. She was too tired to put the wig back on before she fell asleep.

"Jake! You weren't supposed to be awake till 8."

"I-I got up early, but the real question is why aren't you a dude?" Jake still looked totally freaked out.

"It's a long story," Marley sighed.

"Well tell me then. 'Cause I'm pretty damn confused right now!" Now Jake was starting to get angry.

"I'm an actress," Marley started. "My friends don't think I can play a whole bunch of different roles, and I wanted to prove them wrong."

"So the most logical option was to pretend to be a guy?" Jake cut in.

"It's probably the most hardest role a girl can portray. At least it was for me," Marley said.

"So your name's not Matthew."

Marley shook her head. "No. It's Marley."

Jake cracked a tiny smile. So tiny that Marley almost missed it. "That's a pretty name," he said.

Marley felt her face flush. "Thanks. I'm sorry I lied to you."

"You're going to have to make it up to me though," Jake smirked.

"How?"

"Go on a date with me," Jake said, catching Marley totally off guard.

"W-What?"

"Look, I know it's weird, but even though you were basically a guy, I felt like, attracted to you. And I'm not gay, so it scared me. But now it all makes sense."

Marley stood there, dumbfounded. "You thought I was attractive?"

"Well, I think you're much more attractive now than you were as a boy," Jake chuckled, "but yeah."

Marley grinned. "I'd love to go on a date with you. You just have to promise me one thing, though."

"Yeah, anything."

"You can't tell anyone I'm a girl.

"What? Why?"

Marley huffed. "Because, I want to see how longer I can keep this act up."

Jake started laughing. "You're crazy, you know that right?"

"I'm not crazy." Marley frowned.

"Oh, I'm just playing." Jake smiled amusingly. "I promise I won't tell anyone."

"There's also one more thing," Marley said. "You know that Winter Carnival coming up? Well, my mom's coming to that to visit me."

"What's wrong with that?" Jake asked.

"She doesn't know I'm a boy."

"Ohhh. Got it." Jake nodded. "How are we going to do this?"

"We?" Marley looked up at him, a hint of a smile on her lips.

Jake smiled in return. "Yeah, of course. I want to help. I really like you."

Marley felt her cheeks redden once again. "I really like you too," she said softly.

"Good." Jake grinned and quickly checked his watch. "We should probably get going to class. Don't forget this." He tossed Marley's wig gently to her.

Marley rolled her eyes. "Thanks," she said as she readjusted the wig on her head. "Let's go."

* * *

All during their physiology class, Jake and Marley snuck tiny glances at each other, trying to be as discrete as possible. What they didn't know was that Ryder was watching them the whole time, trying to fit the pieces together. Ryder knew something was up. And he was going to make it his mission to find out.

* * *

Jake decided to take Marley out to dinner at a restaurant a couple miles away from campus later than night. When he met her in front of their dorm room, he stood there speechless. Sure, Marley made a good looking dude, but seeing her in a dress, and wearing makeup, and her long, beautiful hair flowing, he was in awe of how gorgeous she was.

Marley readjusted her dress for about the tenth time before sitting down at the table. She was so used to wearing boy clothes for the past couple months, she had forgotten what it felt like to wear a dress.

"You look really pretty tonight," Jake said as he handed her a menu.

"Thanks," Marley said, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "So how did you find this place?"

"Oh, Breadstix has been here forever. It's like the only restaurant in Lima," Jake said.

"The breadsticks aren't even that good here!" Marley exclaimed as she took a bite out of one.

"I'm sure the food's better," Jake assured.

"I don't even care about that," Marley said. "I'm just glad we're here together, as cheesy as that sounds," she laughed. "I've had a crush on you since the moment I saw you," she blurted out.

Jake's eyes lit up. "Really?"

Marley nodded. "Yup. Obviously I couldn't do anything about it because, you know, I was a boy, but yeah."

"I think my friends are suspicious about us," Jake said.

"What? Why?" Marley looked alarmed.

"I guess they saw you looking at me or something, because they asked me to find out if you were gay or not."

"Jake, they can't find out," Marley said.

"I don't know how long I can lie to them. They're going to ask me a bunch of questions. I know it." Jake frowned. "Let's not worry about all of that right now, though. Let's just focus on our date."

Marley cracked a smile. "Sounds good."

Jake raised his glass of root beer. "To a new friendship. And maybe something more," he toasted.

Marley echoed his words and clinked her glass with his. She sure hoped this would turn out to be more than just a friendship. Just as long as his friends didn't find out first.

* * *

"I think there's something going on with Jake and Matthew," Ryder said as he joined Sam and Mike that same evening. The other two guys were shooting some hoops.

"Hey, wanna join us? Mike asked, oblivious to Ryder's accusation. "We need one more person to make this game interesting."

"No, man, I want to talk about Jake and Matthew," Ryder huffed.

"Why are you so concerned about them?" Sam asked. "They're roommates and friends. Nothing wrong about that. You even said that yourself."

"No, dude, you weren't there." Ryder took the basketball out of Sam's hands. "In our physiology class today, they kept on giving each other looks. They were like, flirty looks. They kept on smiling at each other."

"Dude, I thought you weren't homophobic," Mike said, shaking his head slightly in disappointment.

"I'm not!" Ryder shouted. "Jake isn't gay, though. He told me himself."

"Maybe he was lying to you," Sam suggested. "Or maybe he's confused. Either way, don't confront him about it."

"I won't," Ryder said as he pushed past his two best friends. "I'll find out for myself," he mumbled when they were out of earshot.

* * *

Ryder made his way to Jake and Matthew's dorm room, hoping to get some answers out of Matthew without Jake knowing. He knocked on the door a couple of times, but got no answer.

"Matthew, are you in here?" Ryder shouted as he pounded on the door. Getting frustrated, he put his hand on the doorknob and twisted it, expecting it to be locked. To his surprise however, the door opened.

"Idiots," Ryder mumbled as he walked inside. He went over to Matthew's side of the room and started searching around for any of his personal items, just to get some idea of who he is.

"Yes!" He whispered as he found Matthew's cell phone, which was hiding under his pillow. He crossed his fingers and prayed that there wasn't a password on the phone, and sighed in relief when there wasn't one. Ryder knew he had to work fast. He didn't know when Jake or Matthew would be back.

Ryder felt a sense of guilt when he scrolled through Matthew's text messages, but tried to push the feeling away. He knew it was wrong, but he couldn't turn back now.

As he looked at all the people Matthew had texted, one name stood out in front of the others. Someone named Unique. Ryder wasn't sure who this Unique person was, but obviously he or she was close to Matthew, because they texted a lot. One text, however, caught Ryder's eye.

_Good luck on your date tonight._ Unique had texted.

_Thanks! I'll tell you all about when I get home later._ Matthew had written back.

Ryder shut Matthew's phone back off and put it under his pillow. He tried to think of who Matthew would be on a date with tonight. It couldn't be Jake; Jake had said that his older brother was in town for the night and wanted to hang out.

_But Jake could have been lying_, Ryder thought. _No_. Jake was a lot of things, but he wasn't a liar.

Ryder sighed deeply and walked out of the room. He knew he had to talk to Matthew about his date in the morning, but now, all he wanted to do was curl up in his bed and play some Call Of Duty.

* * *

"I had a really nice night tonight." Marley grinned as she walked hand in hand with Jake back to his car. After they had dinner, Jake had taken her out for some ice cream nearby. Every moment Marley spent with Jake, the more and more she liked him.

"So did I," Jake said, a happy smile plastered on his face. In fact, he hadn't stopped smiling since he first saw Marley tonight. "I'm so glad you're a girl."

Marley giggled. "So am I."

Just as they got to his car, Jake stopped Marley. "You, uh, have a little ice cream on your lip," he said.

"Oh." Marley brought her hand up to her upper lip to try to wipe it off.

"No, right here." Jake placed his hand on her lip, staring straight into her bright blue eyes. Neither of them said a word as Jake slowly leaned closer to Marley.

Marley knew Jake was about to kiss her. She closed her eyes in anticipation. When his lips finally made contact with hers, she grinned into the kiss. Jake brought his hand to the back of Marley's head, and Marley placed a delicate hand on Jake's shoulder.

When lack of air suddenly became an issue, Jake reluctantly pulled away. "Hi." He smiled.

"Hi." Marley giggled.

Jake took her hand once again and led her to his car, opening the door for her like a gentleman. They fell into a comfortable silence as they drove back to the college campus. Jake kept one hand on the steering wheel and one hand intertwined with Marley's. Every once in awhile, he would sneak a glance at her, and smirked when she caught him doing so.

Marley was the first one to break the silence. "So, what does this make us exactly?"

Jake thought for a moment. "I don't know. I mean, I want you to be my girlfriend, but it's going to be so complicated."

"Yeah, I know." Marley nodded. "I've never had a secret relationship before. It could be fun."

"Yeah, just as long as my friends don't find out," Jake said. "Or anyone else."

"I'll try to keep this up as long as I can," Marley said. She knew she had to. Her relationship with Jake depended on it.

* * *

**Again, sorry for the long wait. I was away for the last two and a half weeks, so it was hard to find time to write. Also, the tragedy that happened with Cory didn't really put me in the writing mood. I'm still really heartbroken about it, as I'm sure all of you are too. Anyway, thanks for reading, and stay tuned.**


	5. A Rocky Friendship

Marley woke up the next day to someone violently pounding on the door. She groaned and slowly got out of bed, wondering who in their right mind would be pounding on someone's door at eight in the morning on a Saturday. She looked over to Jake, who was still sleeping. Seriously, that boy could sleep through anything.

"What do you want Ryder?" Marley asked in an annoyed tone as Jake's friend made his way inside.

"I need to ask you something," Ryder said.

"Well can you wait? It's super early." Marley crossed her arms, but then immediately uncrossed them when she realized that wasn't a very boyish thing to do.

"Not really," Ryder said. "So, I, uh, heard you had a date last night."

"Where did you hear that?"

"Oh, just around." Ryder shrugged. "So who was it with?"

"Why do you care?" Marley shot back.

"Because I might know who the girl is," Ryder said, mentally kicking himself for not coming up with a better lie.

"It was, uh, Sugar," Marley said the first name she could think of.

"I thought you didn't like her," Ryder said skeptically.

"I, uh, decided to give her another chance."

"Okay, well, um, I'll see you later," Ryder said, giving Marley one last strange look as he walked out.

_Weird_, Marley thought as she climbed back into bed.

"What was that all about?" Jake asked groggily as he sat up.

"Ryder wanted to know all about my 'date'," she air quoted.

"How did he know about that?" Jake asked in concern.

"I don't know, but I told him I went out with Sugar."

"Did he buy it?"

"I think so, but he kept on giving me weird looks." Marley frowned.

"Hey, it's going to be okay." Jake hugged his new girlfriend. As he brought his lips to hers, he yanked off her wig. He grinned. "Much better."

* * *

Later that afternoon, Marley opened up her laptop and accepted a video chat request from Unique. "Unique!" She squealed when her best friend's face came into view.

"Hey girl!" Unique said. "Britt's here too."

"Hey Marley!" Brittany shouted in the background.

"How come you're not wearing your wig?" Unique demanded. "Jake can come in any second."

"Actually, there's, uh, something I need to tell you guys. Jake and I are kinda-" Marley was suddenly interrupted by Jake coming in the room and kissing her lightly on the cheek.

"Oh what the hell?" Unique shouted.

"Surprise," Marley said in a small voice.

"You and Jake are dating?" Unique screeched.

"Congratulations!" Brittany said.

"No, Britt. This isn't good. Marley's going to blow her cover," Unique said.

"Can't you be happy for me?" Marley asked.

"This is a bad idea, Marley." Unique frowned. "I knew this was going to happen."

"Look, I promise I'm not going to tell anyone about her," Jake assured Unique.

Unique sighed deeply. "Does anyone else know?"

"Not at the moment, no," Marley said, "but I think one of Jake's friends is on to us."

"Are you planning on telling him?" Unique asked.

"No. He's horrible at keeping secrets," Jake said.

"What are you going to do about the Winter Carnival?" Brittany spoke up. "Isn't it tomorrow?"

"Ugh, I totally forgot about that," Marley groaned. "Is my mom still coming?"

"Yep. She called me yesterday," Brittany said.

"Why would she call you?" Unique said.

Brittany shrugged. "I don't know."

"We'll figure something out," Jake said, grabbing a hold of Marley's hand.

"I don't know why you don't like him, Unique," Brittany whispered to her friend. "I think he's really sweet."

Unique didn't respond. She just rolled her eyes at the ditzy blonde. "Look, we should probably go," she finally said. "I guess we'll see you guys tomorrow at the carnival."

"Bye," Marley said softly and closed her computer.

"Is everything okay with you guys?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, we'll be fine. "Unique and I always have little arguments like that. It's nothing," Marley said, convincing that to herself more than to Jake. She really hoped that this wouldn't all blow up in her face.

* * *

Marley came back to her dorm later that evening and saw Jake on his bed, concentrating really hard on a piece of paper.

"Hey, where were you? Sam and Mike asked me to hang out with them. I thought you were going to join us." Marley skipped over to Jake and kissed him on the cheek.

"I was here," Jake said. "I'm just working on something."

"What?" Marley grabbed the piece of paper out of Jake's hands before he could stop her. "What's this?"

"I was just laying out a plan for tomorrow's carnival. I drew everything out."

"Well, my mom's supposed to get here around noon tomorrow, so we have a couple hours before that. Brittany told me she and Unique will try to keep my mom busy so I have time to change in and out of these clothes. It's just going to be a lot of work," Marley sighed.

"Hey, look at me." Jake put a hand to Marley's chin and lifted it slightly. "This is going to work."

"I just hate that I'm lying to everyone. Especially my mom. She told me to always tell the truth."

"Well sometimes there are certain situations where you have to lie," Jake said, trying to be as helpful as possible.

"I guess you're right," Marley said. "I can't believe I've kept this up for already half the year," she marvelled. "If I can do this for the next half of the year, I can really do this. I can really be a good actress."

"You're already a good actress." Jake kissed her forehead. Then his face turned serious. "Are you really moving to New York after this?"

"I-I don't know. I mean, I was planning to, but I didn't know I would, you know, meet you."

"We don't have to talk about that now," Jake said softly. "Let's just worry about tomorrow."

"Right." Marley crawled into bed and turned her light off. She wanted to get as much sleep as possible. Tomorrow was going to be a long day. She just knew it.

* * *

**Hey, sorry this chapter was short. I didn't have a lot of time to write this week, and I wanted to update fairly quickly. I'm starting a new Jarley chaptered fic, but I probably won't post it for a little while. I still have to plan it out. This story is going to be much shorter than my last one, The Broken Ones, which had 17 chapters I believe. This one will probably be 8-9 chapters maybe. I'm not sure though. Anyways, let me know how you liked this chapter, and stay tuned for the next one.**


	6. The Carnival

**Hey guys! So this chapter is taking inspiration from a scene in She's The Man. You know, the scene where Viola is switching from herself to Sebastian at the Junior League Carnival. It's not exactly like that, but parts of it will be kind of similar. And sorry for the long wait. I've been super busy these past couple weeks getting ready for school. Updates might not be as frequent as they were this summer.**

A feeling of dread settled in Marley's stomach the second she woke up the next morning. Today was the day of the Winter Carnival. And the day her mom was visiting. Marley knew today would be challenging, but she was so grateful she had Jake by her side. He was truly the best boyfriend ever in her eyes. Marley took a deep breath, put her wig on, threw on a t-shirt and shorts, and walked out the door, ready to take on the day**.**

As Marley walked to Ryder's dorm to meet Jake and the other guys, she noticed a bunch of students set up the game tables and a lunch buffet. Marley even spotted a kissing booth.

"Hey guys," Marley said as she walked into Ryder's room. Sam and Mike nodded and Jake gave her a tiny wink. Marley had to stop herself from blushing too hard. Ryder just stared at Marley, an unreadable look etched on his face.

"So, Matthew," Ryder finally spoke up. "Is Sugar coming?"

"Um, I don't know," Marley said.

"Huh. That's strange. I thought, since you guys were, you know, dating, she would tell you if she was coming or not."

"Ryder," Jake warned.

"You and Sugar are dating?" Sam asked. "I thought you went on like one disastrous date and that was it."

"Um, we're not really dating," Marley said.

"Really? That's not what you told me." Ryder smirked. "Is there something you're not telling us?"

"Just because you go on one date with someone doesn't automatically mean you two are dating," Jake cut in.

"Yeah," Marley said, and mouthed a quick 'thank you' to Jake when no one was looking.

"Well Tina told me she was going," Mike spoke. "Mercedes too. And if they're going, I'm sure Kitty and Sugar are as well."

"Kitty's going?" Ryder asked, his mood instantly changing. "Awesome."

"Hey, we should probably head down there now," Marley said, glad that the focus was off of her for a moment.

The four boys nodded in agreement. "Let's go."

* * *

"When can I see Marley's room?" Millie Rose asked for what seemed like the hundredth time today.

"Um, soon, Ms. Rose," Unique struggled to answer. "Where's Marley?" She hissed to Brittany, who just shrugged.

"I don't know," Brittany finally whispered back. "I called her, but she didn't answer."

"Marley's going to be at this carnival, right?" Ms. Rose asked.

"Yes, she should meet us soon," Unique said, hoping Marley's mother wouldn't notice the uncertainty in her voice. Luckily she didn't.

"Ugh, Marley where are you?" Brittany mumbled to herself. If Marley didn't get here soon, Ms. Rose would be asking a lot of questions. Questions that neither Unique nor Brittany would be able to answer.

* * *

As soon as they arrived at the festivities, Marley searched around the area for her mom.

"I'm going to change into my dress and go find my mom," Marley whispered over to Jake when the other guys weren't paying attention. "I'll be back in like fifteen minutes."

Jake nodded and watched his girlfriend run to the nearest bathroom.

Once Marley had privacy, she stepped out of her slightly stained t-shirt and baggy jeans, and put on a pretty floral dress. She then tore off her wig and gave her long, flowing locks a quick fluff. After applying a bit of mascara and lipgloss, she left the bathroom and walked in the opposite direction of Jake and the guys.

After a couple minutes of searching, Marley finally found her mom standing by the dessert table with Unique and Brittany, who was quietly licking all the frosting off her pink cupcake.

"Mom!" Marley shouted, and ran full speed to her. She missed her mom so much; she had never gone this long without seeing her.

"Oh, sweetie, I've missed you!" Ms. Rose enveloped her daughter in a large, bone-crushing hug.

"I missed you too, mom," Marley whispered into her mom's chest.

When her mom finally decided to let go, Marley greeted her two best friends in the same fashion. As the three of them hugged, Unique whispered into Marley's ear, "Is your boyfriend here?"

"For a matter of fact, yes," Marley said, trying to hide the oncoming blush on her cheeks. "And so are his cute friends."

"So, Marles, now that you're here, can we see your dorm?" Ms. Rose asked once again.

Marley froze. "Uh..." She quickly thought of a good excuse. "My roommate is rearranging all her furniture, so the room's kind of a mess," she lied smoothly.

"Where is your roommate? Are you friends with her?" Ms. Rose continued to question.

"Um, not really." Technically, it wasn't really a lie.

"Well did you make any new friends?" Ms. Rose asked. "You must have."

"Um, yeah, I did, but they're not here right now," Marley said. She was getting better and better at coming up with good excuses on the spot. "If I see them I'll introduce you."

"Don't you think you should, uh, look for them now?" Unique asked. Luckily, Marley knew her friend was referring to Jake and the guys.

"Yes, Unique, I should." Marley nodded. "I'll, uh, be right back."

Once she was out of sight from her mom, Marley ran to the bathroom to change back into Matthew. She was already sweating and out of breath when she entered one of the stalls. _At least this would be a good workout_, Marley thought.

Once she was Matthew again, Marley ran to find Jake. She quickly spotted him and the guys by the kissing booth with Tina, Mercedes, Sugar, and Kitty, who was running the booth.

"Come on, just one kiss," Ryder begged.

"Nuh uh." Kitty shook her head. "You gotta pay first."

"Oh, come on. What about the more than friends discount?" He raised an eyebrow.

"But we're not more than friends," Kitty said.

"Wanna be?" Ryder winked.

Kitty smirked, and motioned Ryder closer, almost kissing distance. Ryder closed his eyes and puckered up, awaiting his kiss. But Kitty was smarter than that. "Nope," she whispered, and Ryder's eyes shot opened.

Kitty laughed. "You gotta pay for a kiss. No discount."

"Anyone have a dollar?" Ryder tried one last time. When everyone around him shook their heads, Ryder groaned loudly. "You suck," he told Kitty, making sure his crush could tell the humor in his voice. "I will kiss you if it's the last thing I do!" He shouted dramatically as he backed away.

"Oh hey Matthew, didn't notice you come here," Ryder said when he turned around.

"Uh, yeah, I had to go to the bathroom."

Tina, Mercedes, and Sugar joined them, and Ryder cleared his throat. "Well this must be awkward," he said.

"Why?" Sugar asked as Mike, Jake, and Sam came over to them.

"Because you and Matthew are like, in a weird place right now. At least from what he's told me."

"Oh no," Jake whispered, staring at the ground.

"I, um, I'm gonna get some water," Marley quickly said, and ran out of there as fast as she could.

"I guess he's avoiding you," Ryder said to Sugar, who looked totally confused.

* * *

Marley changed back into her dress in record time, fluffing her hair and reapplying her mascara and lipgloss as she ran out of the stall.

"Hey, sorry about that," Marley said as she joined her mom back at the dessert table.

"Why are you out of breath, sweetie?" Ms. Rose asked.

"I was, uh, running around all over the place to find my friends. I didn't see them."

"Oh, that's too bad. Maybe next time."

"Yep." Marley smiled. "So, how long are you here for? When do you guys drive back home?"

"Today," Brittany said. "Your mom just wanted to see you for the day."

"Yeah, I have to go back to work tomorrow." Ms. Rose nodded sadly. "I wish I could stay longer."

"Well hopefully you can come back and visit soon," Marley said, forcing herself to smile widely. "And you could, uh, meet my friends."

"That sounds lovely." Ms. Rose squeezed Marley's hand. She checked her watch. "We should probably get going, girls," she sullenly said.

"Text us later," Brittany said as she hugged Marley once again.

Unique joined them. "Keep us updated with Jake. I'm sorry I snapped at you the other day about it."

"Its okay." Marley smiled. "I'll talk to you guys later, okay?"

Unique and Brittany nodded. "Bye Marley," they said in unison.

Ms. Rose gave one last wave and headed off with Brittany and Unique.

When they were out of sight, Marley slowly headed back to the bathroom to change hopefully for the last time. However, before she got there, Mike's girlfriend Tina stopped her.

"Whoa," Tina exclaimed. "You look just like Matthew."

"Um, who?" Marley tried to keep the panic out of her voice.

"Come here." Tina dragged Marley back to the guys against her will.

"Hey guys, doesn't she look like the girl version of Matthew?" Tina said. Mike, Sam, Ryder, Mercedes, and Sugar just stared at her. And Jake had the same panicked expression on his face as well.

"Whoa, she's right," Sam said. "You could be his like, twin sister or something."

Marley thought fast. She could either deny everything, say that she didn't know who the heck Matthew was. Or she could tell a different lie. One that would probably make more sense.

"Actually I am Matthew's sister," Marley said.

"Seriously?" Ryder said. "He never told us about a sister."

Jake watched Marley as she struggled to come up with answers. He wanted more than anything to help her out.

"Um, we're not exactly close. We, uh, fight a lot," Marley said.

"So why are you here?" Sugar asked bluntly.

"Uh..." Marley glanced quickly to Jake. She was all out of excuses.

"I invited her," Jake spoke up. "I, uh, knew Matthew had a sister, and he told me all about her, so I invited her to come."

"Really?" Ryder eyed Jake. "Are you guys like a thing?"

Jake widened his eyes. "Uh..."

"Yes," Marley blurted out, startling herself.

"Yep, we're, um, dating." Jake put his arms around Marley's waist. "Surprise," he said, smiling weakly.

"How did that happen?" Ryder asked, obviously still in disbelief.

"It's a long story," Jake said.

"Yeah." Marley nodded. "I should, uh, probably go. My mom's waiting."

"Wait, when are we going to see you again?" Sam asked.

"Uh, soon, hopefully." Marley looked over to Jake, who nodded. "Um, bye." She ran out of sight back to the bathroom. _What the hell just happened?_ She thought to herself.

* * *

Back outside, Jake was thinking the exact same thing.

"Why didn't you tell us this, dude?" Ryder asked, slapping Jake's shoulder.

"I don't know." Jake shrugged.

"Wait, does Matthew know you're dating his sister?"

"Yeah, he does," Jake said. "Though he wasn't cool with it at first."

"Oh, so _that's_ why you were always hanging out with him and smiling at him. You were trying to get on his good side so he'd be okay with you dating his sister."

"Um, yep," Jake said.

"So what's her name?"

"Um, her name's Marley," Jake said. It was the first truth he's told in a while.

"Well she seems nice. And she's super hot." Ryder winked. "I approve."

Jake laughed. "Thanks, man."

* * *

Once she was Matthew again, Marley went back outside to join her friends. Of course, the second they spotted her, she was bombarded with questions.

"Why didn't you tell us you had a sister?" Sam asked.

"Are you guys twins?" Mike questioned.

"Does she go to school here?" Ryder demanded.

"She's really pretty," Sugar said.

"Um, yes we're siblings," Marley started. "And, uh, yes, we're twins, and, uh, she doesn't go to school here, and yeah, I guess she's pretty."

"So why didn't you tell us?" Ryder asked.

"I mean, it's not that important." Marley shrugged.

"But _I_ could have gotten to her first. Not Jake," Ryder pouted.

"Hey!" Jake laughed amusingly.

"So Jake, when do you see her again?" Sam asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh, soon I think," Jake said. "And I plan to take her on an amazing date the next time I see her." Jake quickly caught Marley's eye when no one was looking and winked.

Marley giggled softly to herself. She really did have the best boyfriend ever.


	7. The Truth Comes Out

Marley found herself cuddled next to Jake when she woke up, about a month after the carnival. For the first time in months, she woke up without a pit in her stomach. Each day she's been here, she had woken up dreading what the day would bring. Today, however, she felt at ease.

"Morning," Jake mumbled next to her.

Marley gave Jake a sincere smile. "Morning." She and Jake didn't have sex last night (though secretly she wished they had), they just cuddled all night. But Marley was ready to take the next step in their relationship. They had been dating for about three months, after all. She was ready.

"Want to stay in bed the whole day?" Jake asked.

Marley frowned. "I can't. I have class in half an hour," she grumbled. However, if she had known beforehand that today would be her last day at the McKinley School for Boys, she would have gladly taken Jake's offer.

* * *

Ryder texted Marley later in the afternoon, asking to hang out with him, Sam, and Mike in the quad. She happily agreed. When Marley got closer to the quad, she noticed that Tina, Mercedes, Kitty, and of course, Sugar, were all there too. Marley took a deep breath before joining them. Hopefully neither Ryder nor Sugar would question her about anything. Marley hadn't been together with the two of them at the same time since the carnival.

"Hey guys," Marley said deeply, sitting down next to Sam, who was laughing at Ryder's newest attempt to get Kitty's attention.

"Come on Kitty, you're like super awesome at Calculus. Can't you help me with this one problem?" Ryder begged.

Kitty rolled her eyes at Ryder. "Are you even taking a Calculus class?"

"Of course," Ryder scoffed. "I'm offended that you would even ask that."

Kitty smirked. "Oh really now? Then why have I never seen you carry a Calculus textbook, or whine about doing the homework any other time?"

Ryder started to get all flustered. He wordlessly stood up and stomped over to a nearby student.

"Here." Ryder thrusted the Calculus homework in the boy's arms. "It didn't work."

"Sorry about that," the boy said sympathetically.

"See you around, Jonathan." Ryder patted the kid's back.

"My name's _Justin_!" The boy shouted as Ryder made his way back to Kitty.

"I can't believe you asked a nerd to give you their homework and pass it off as yours." Kitty shook her head. "You're pathetic." She got up and left, giving Ryder one last eye-roll before going the other direction.

"You've got it bad, man," Sam said.

"I need to get her alone," Ryder said, still upset. "I need to prove to her that I'm _not_ pathetic.

"Why don't you just ask her out in front of everyone?" Marley spoke up. "Then it would be hard for her to say no."

"Dude, I've tried that," Ryder sighed. "She just laughed in my face."

"Oh," Marley said softly. "Sorry."

"Speaking of girls, what ever happened between you and Sugar? You never told us why you ditched her at the carnival," Ryder said, perking up pretty fast. Of course, he always seemed more interested in Marley's life than his own.

"Um…" Marley kept her head down. She wished Jake was here to help her out.

"Yeah, you were acting pretty weird," Mike said. "We never talked talked about it after the carnival."

"Yeah, I didn't do anything," Sugar spoke up, her nasally voice causing Marley to flinch.

"It's kind of a long story," Marley finally said. She knew she needed to choose her words wisely.

"No it's not." Sugar furrowed her thin eyebrows. "We went on one date like forever ago, and you said you liked someone else."

"_What?!_" Ryder and Sam exclaimed.

"Who?" Mike asked.

_Oh crap…_ Marley's mouth formed a tight 'O' shape. She was literally speechless.

"Why would you lie to us?" Ryder asked. "Just tell us who you like."

"I can't," Marley finally found her voice.

"Why not?" Ryder demanded.

"Why do you care?!" Marley shouted. From there, everything exploded.

"Why do care who I hang out with? Why do you care who I go on a date with? Why do you care more about my personal life than yours?" Marley kept shouting, trying to keep her voice as deep as possible. "And you know what? I'm not even into Sugar!" Marley couldn't stop. She couldn't control what was coming out of her mouth anymore.

"I don't even want to date girls. I _am_ a girl!" Marley yelled. After realizing her huge mistake, she clapped her hand over her mouth. Then she started panicking. She just blew it. She totally just blew it. _Maybe no one noticed her slip up?_

Ryder, Mike, Sam, Mercedes, and Tina sat there, every single one of their mouths hanging wide open.

"You're a _girl_?" Sam finally said after a couple minutes of pure silence.

Without saying a word, Marley lifted her hands to her head and lifted off her wig, releasing her long, tangled hair.

"Oh my god," Tina gasped. "You're Matthew's sister."

"There is no Matthew," Marley sighed. "I made him up."

"Why would you do that?" Mike asked.

Before Marley could answer, Dean Figgins walked up to Marley with a disgusted look plastered on his face.

"Come to my office," Dean Figgins said flatly.

Marley gulped and followed the Dean, giving Ryder and everyone one last look before turning around.

* * *

Marley sat outside Figgins' office five minutes later, waiting for him to call her inside. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Jake running towards her.

"Jake!" Marley stood up and ran towards him.

Jake engulfed her in a giant hug. "Marley, what happened? Ryder texted me saying to go to Figgins' office and see what was there. Wait, why isn't your wig on?"

A fresh batch of tears streamed down Marley's face. "I messed up, Jake." She hid her face in Jake's shirt. "I'm such an idiot."

"Hey, no you're not," Jake said, rubbing her back soothingly. "Just tell me what happened."

"Matthew Rose?" Figgins directed Marley into his office. Jake followed close behind.

"Take a seat," Figgins said, staring at Marley. "Now would you like to tell me why you pretended to be a boy?"

Marley felt like she was going to throw up. Or faint. Or both. She quickly looked over to Jake, silently begging him to talk for her.

Jake caught Marley's eye and nodded. "You see, Dean Figgins, this is kind of a long story," he said.

"Well I'd like to hear it," Figgins said in his thick Indian accent.

"My name isn't Matthew," Marley finally spoke. "It's Marley. And I'm not really a boy. I'm an aspiring actress."

* * *

After over an hour of Dean Figgins questioning both Marley and Jake, he finally let them leave his office, but not before calling Marley's mom.

"This can't be happening. Tell me this isn't happening," Marley cried as the two of them sat in their previous seats outside the Dean's office, waiting for Ms. Rose to show up.

Before Jake could speak, Ryder, Sam, and Mike came into view.

"I can't believe you're a _girl_," Ryder sneered, walking right up to Marley. "You've been lying to us this whole time."

"I had to," Marley said. "It was the only way."

"And Jake, you don't seem too fazed by this," Ryder continued, totally ignoring Marley. "Have you known this whole time?"

Jake took a deep breath. "Yes, I did."

"How could you do that, man?! I thought we told each other everything!"

"Ryder, calm down," Jake said, pulling him down onto one of the seats. "Just relax."

Not even five minutes later, Marley's mom showed up. And she was fuming.

"Marley Rose, would you care to explain why I was called in here to pick my _son_ up from college?!"

Marley burst into sobs. Jake instinctively put his arm around her to comfort her. "I'm sorry mom," she hiccuped.

"You're coming with me, young lady." Ms. Rose grabbed the sleeve of Marley's jacket and dragged her out of the room.

"Mom, stop!" Marley begged. "Where are we going?"

"Home. You've been officially expelled from here."

"What?" Marley screeched. "That's not fair!"

"I don't want to hear it," Ms. Rose said firmly. "Now let's go."

* * *

As soon as Marley was in the car, she secretly texted Jake. Luckily, she was sitting in the back seat, so her mom couldn't see what she was doing.

_Mom's taking me home_, Marley typed. _Said I was expelled from McKinley._

_What?!_ Jake texted back seconds later. _What are we going to do?_

Marley thought for a moment before texting back._ I'll think of something. I don't want to leave. I'm not ready to say goodbye._

Jake texted back a minute later._ I love you_, was all he said.

Marley almost dropped her phone. Jake had never told her he loved her before. She never had anyone told her they loved her before. Well, except for her mom, but she didn't count.

_I love you too_, Marley typed back with a huge grin on her face.

"What are you smiling so much about?" Ms. Rose asked from up front. "You're about to be in some huge trouble."

A frown appeared back on Marley's face as she tried to think of a plan to get her back at McKinley. She needed to explain everything to Ryder, Sam, and Mike, and she needed to see Jake again.

She didn't know how, but she knew she _had_ to fix this.

* * *

**Stay tuned!**


	8. The Agreement

"_Please_, mom," Marley begged for what seemed like the millionth time. "Please let me go back."

"Absolutely not," Ms. Rose stated harshly.

"But why not?" Marley asked. "It's not like I did anything _that_ bad."

"You lied to me, your friends, and your whole school, including the Dean. You need to be punished for it." Ms. Rose put her hands on her hips, not taking no for an answer. "You're grounded."

Marley rolled her eyes. "Mom, come on, I'm almost nineteen. Don't you think that's a little childish?"

"I don't want to discuss this anymore, Marley," Ms. Rose said. "Just go to your room."

"Fine," Marley sighed. "But just know that this is how the whole 'rebelling against your mom' act starts."

"You're such a drama queen, Marles." Ms. Rose chuckled.

Marley let out a small smile. It was good to know that her mom wasn't _too_ mad at her.

* * *

Marley spent the next few hours in her room, bored out of her mind. She desperately wanted to text Jake, but her mom took her phone away. She wouldn't even allow Brittany or Unique to visit either.

A little while later, the doorbell rang. Figuring it was just a solicitor or the neighbors, Marley ignored it and continued reading her book.

"Marley, come down here!" Ms. Rose called from downstairs.

Marley huffed and threw her book down. She walked out of her room and peered downstairs to see who was at the door. Once she saw who was standing there, she couldn't believe it.

"Jake?" Marley ran downstairs and greeted her boyfriend with a huge hug. "What are you doing here?" she asked as he spun her around.

"I caught a bus to here this morning after eating breakfast with the guys. I told them I was visiting my mom, so they don't know I'm here. They're still kind of pissed at you. I had to see you though."

"Oh, Jake." Marley grinned as she gave him a peck on the lips. "I missed you so much."

"Sorry to break this up guys, but you need to leave, Jake," Ms. Rose said, interrupting their moment. "Marley's in big trouble."

"Look, Ms. Rose, I came here to ask you to please let Marley come back," Jake said. "She can go to our sister school which is really close to our's."

"Please, mom." Marley stepped in.

Ms. Rose took a minute to think about it, which was definitely progress. Before, she would just say no to everything without hesitation.

"Look, Jake, it was really sweet of you to come all the way here, but your Dean already expelled Marley. I don't think she would be easily let back in, even at the girls school," Ms. Rose finally said.

"It's worth a try." Jake shrugged. "Dean Figgins may seem harsh, but he's a really cool dude."

"I don't know, he seemed really angry at me." Marley frowned.

"Well I'm sure if he heard your explanation, he would understand," Jake said.

Ms. Rose stayed silent as she processed all of this.

Jake sighed. "Well I guess I should go then. It's a long bus ride back to Lima."

"Wait," Ms. Rose finally said. "You can stay here, Jake."

"_What?!_" both Marley and Jake exclaimed in unison.

"It doesn't make any sense for Jake to go back to Lima tonight if Marley goes tomorrow to sort this out." Ms. Rose smiled. "I'll have Unique and Brittany drive you guys to Lima tomorrow."

"Are you serious?" Marley asked.

"One hundred percent."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Marley ran up to her mom and gave her a giant, bone-crushing hug. "Thank you for understanding," she whispered into her mom's chest.

"I just want what's best for you, sweetie," Ms. Rose said. "You seem to be really happy there."

Marley nodded. "I really am."

Ms. Rose smiled once again. "Then I'm letting you go."

"You're the best, mom! Come on, Jake." Marley grabbed Jake's hand and dragged him to her room.

"I can't believe this," Marley exclaimed once she and Jake were upstairs.

"I know," Jake said, still kind of in shock. "I didn't think she'd let you go, let alone let me stay here tonight."

"Jake?" Marley asked as she sat on her bed, making room for him to join her. "Did you really mean what you said in that text?"

"That I love you?"

Marley nodded. "Yeah."

Jake's cheeks flushed. "Of course. I really do love you, Marley."

Marley let out a giggle. "I really love you too, Jake."

* * *

Even though Ms. Rose was respectful of Jake and Marley's relationship, she still wanted to keep a good eye on them, so she invited the two of them down to the living room to watch a movie on Netflix. When the movie ended two hours later, Ms. Rose retreated up to her room, and Marley brought Jake back up to hers. Once they were alone, Marley walked up to Jake and started kissing him passionately.

Things were escalating pretty fast, and before Marley knew it, she was unbuttoning Jake's shirt and trying to get hers off as well.

"Marley, wait." Jake stopped her. "Are you sure about this?"

"Yes, I'm sure," Marley said. "I've never been so sure of anything in my entire life."

Jake chuckled at Marley's antics. "But your mom…" he suddenly remembered.

"She's upstairs in her room, probably fast asleep. And she sleeps with the TV on pretty loudly anyways," Marley said as she continued to unbutton Jake's shirt.

Jake stopped her once again. "It's just...I really want to make sure you're ready."

"Jake, I am ready. I love you."

Jake grinned sheepishly. "I love you too." He put a piece of Marley's hair behind her ear and kissed her deeply.

Things began to speed up, and before long, Jake was making love to her as she sighed his name. Marley was in utter bliss. She couldn't have asked for anything better.

"I love you," was the last thing Marley remembered saying after, before falling asleep next to Jake.

* * *

Marley awoke the next morning, feeling an unfamiliar ache in her lower body. She sighed in content as memories from the night before flooded through her mind. She couldn't believe it actually happened. It was just so perfect. She looked over to Jake, who was still sound asleep.

Marley giggled and kissed his cheek lightly, causing him to stir.

A couple minutes later, Jake finally opened his eyes and adjusted them to the brightness of the room. "Morning," he mumbled sleepily.

"Good morning." Marley smiled brightly.

"How are you feeling?"

"Pretty awesome," Marley admitted. "Last night was amazing," she said, her cheeks slightly flushing.

"Totally," Jake said. "But we should probably get going soon so we can get to Lima as soon as possible."

"Yeah, you're right." Marley nodded. "I'll call Unique to pick us up in half an hour."

"Sounds good." Jake smiled as he leaned in to kiss her again.

Marley didn't think she'd ever get tired of that.

* * *

**So this story is starting to come to an end, unfortunately. One more chapter and an epilogue. Once this story ends, I will continue Spirit, and I'll also start a new multi-chaptered fic. And I'm also open to suggestions for any drabble prompts. Anyways, hope you guys liked this fluffy chapter, and stay tuned for the next update :)**


	9. Patching Things Up

"Look Dean Figgins, I know this whole thing is really messed up, but you have to let Marley back at McKinley," Jake pleaded to the dean. He and Marley had arrived at the campus minutes before, and begged Figgins for time to explain.

"Mr. Puckerman, there is a reason there are two McKinley schools," Figgins began. "I never expected anything like this to happen here."

"It's not for the reason you think," Marley spoke up. "I didn't come here to be with the boys. I came here to _be_ a boy."

Noticing Figgins highly confused expression, Jake decided to step in again. "What Marley means is that she came here to pretend to be a boy."

"I'm an aspiring actress," Marley explained. "I came here to prove to my friends and to myself that I can play any role, no matter how challenging."

"I see," Figgins said, starting to slowly understand.

"Look, I understand if you still want to expel me, but I feel like I needed to explain to you first why I did it," Marley said.

"Well this is a very odd predicament," Figgins said. "It's not classified as an expellable act in the student handbook, so technically, I cannot do that."

Marley breathed a sigh of relief.

"But," he warned before Marley got too happy, "I cannot let you attend McKinley School for Boys."

"W-What?" The smile on her face quickly disappeared.

"You will need to attend the McKinley School for _Girls_."

Happiness filled Marley once again. "Thank you so much!" she grinned, tears of joy dotting her eyes.

"Just take this application and you're all set," Dean Figgins said with a warm smile on his face. "We hope to see you soon."

"Definitely." Marley nodded as she stood up. The dean walked her and Jake out of his office. Once they were alone, Jake grabbed Marley and spun her around.

"I can't believe that actually worked!" Jake exclaimed.

"I know," Marley said in disbelief. "But now comes the even harder part."

"Talking to the guys?"

"Yep."

"Let's just get it over with," Jake sighed. "Come on. They're probably shooting some hoops in the quad now."

"Okay." Marley took a deep breath and followed Jake, crossing her fingers and hoping for the best.

* * *

"What are you doing here?" Ryder asked, his face twisting in disgust when he saw Jake and Marley walk towards him and his friends.

"I need to explain," Marley sighed. "Just please hear me out."

"Why?" Ryder demanded. "You lied straight to our faces this whole time."

"Just let her talk," Sam said. Mike nodded in agreement.

"Fine." Ryder rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"I didn't mean for things to get out of hand," Marley started. "I didn't think I would get close to anyone. My only intention was to enroll here and convince the guys here that I was just like them. I thought it would last a week. Maybe two. I was sure someone here would find out."

"But someone did," Mike said, referring to Jake.

"Yeah, but she explained everything to me and I understood. And also I knew there was something between us and she actually being a girl made me kind of relieved."

Sam cracked a smile. "I guess Ryder was right when he thought there was something going on between the two of you."

Ryder, who had been silent this whole time, let out a humorless snort. "You know you could have told us, right?"

I know I could have, but I didn't even plan on telling Jake. He found out himself. I didn't want to tell _anyone_."

"So what's going to happen now?" Mike asked. "Did Figgins really expel you?"

"He expelled me from here, but he's letting me attend the girls school," Marley said with a smile. "So _technically_ I'm still here."

"Please say something Ryder," Jake said, looking at his best friend. "I don't want you to be mad at me."

A light bulb suddenly went off in Marley's head. She knew exactly how to get on Ryder's good side. "You know Ryder, since I'm going to be at the girls school, I'm going to see Kitty pretty often. It would be a shame if you guys never worked things out. But, since you are mad at me, I guess you wouldn't want me to talk to her for you." She smirked, knowing she had Ryder right where she wanted him.

"Psh, I was just kidding at the 'angry at you' part," Ryder quickly said. "We're totally cool. Please talk to Kitty for me."

Marley laughed. "So just to be clear, you're not mad?"

Ryder shook his head. "Nah, we're good. Sorry for overreacting."

"It's fine," Marley said as she pulled Ryder into a friendly hug.

"But you have to talk to Kitty," Ryder reminded.

Marley giggled. "I will, I promise." She was just glad to have her friends back.

* * *

"Alright, where do you want this?" Jake asked as he brought Marley's computer into her new dorm room. It was her first official day at the new school. It actually felt weird walking around the campus as a girl.

"Over there." Marley pointed to the empty desk on the other side of the room.

"What about this?" Sam walked in with her comforter and pillows.

"Just put in on the bed for now. I'll make the bed later."

"Well congratulations," Mike said as he and Ryder walked into the room. "You're new dorm is finally complete."

"Thanks guys," Marley laughed. "I still can't believe I'm actually here."

"Well we'll be able to see you on the weekends and in the evenings," Jake said.

"That sounds great," Marley said cheerfully, kissing Jake's cheek.

"Okay, we've got class in ten minutes," Sam said as he checked his watch. "We better get going."

"See you guys later," Marley said as they walked out.

"Don't forget to talk to Kitty!" Ryder shouted for the millionth time, as if Marley needed to be reminded again.

Marley shook her head and giggled. She looked around her new room. She was lucky enough to get a single dorm, but she couldn't help but think something was missing. She missed having Jake as a roommate so much. She knew it would be kind of lonely by herself, but she didn't care. Marley was here, where she truly wanted to be. That's all that mattered.

* * *

**Stay tuned for the epilogue!**


	10. Goodbye (For Now)

**Well, here it is. The final chapter. Hope you guys enjoy.**

* * *

_**Three years later…**_

"So this is it, huh?" Jake mumbled as he helped Marley pack up her dorm room.

Marley nodded sadly. "Guess so."

"What time does your plane leave?"

"In about three hours."

"Are you sure you really want to do this?" Jake asked for the tenth time today.

"Jake, going to New York has been a dream of mine since I was seven years old."

"Right. I just wanted to make sure."

Jake was super happy that his girlfriend was finally moving to New York. He really was. They had just graduated from college, and Jake knew Marley was really for bigger and better things. That didn't mean he wasn't sad to leave her, though.

"You know you can come visit me whenever you want," Marley said.

Jake sighed. "Yeah, I know, but it's going to be hard. You're moving all the way to New York, and I'm staying here in Lima. Who knows what kind of guys are in New York. Probably guys better than me. I'm sure you'll be swept off your feet the second you get there."

Marley burst out laughing. "That is not going to happen. You're the only guy for me."

"Good." Jake grinned and leaned in to give his girl a quick kiss. "Alright, let's finish packing. We have to meet the guys before you leave for the airport."

"Right." Marley nodded as she closed her last suitcase and wheeled it out the room, saying goodbye to her dorm for the very last time.

* * *

"So how was the graduation party?" Jake asked as he and Marley met Ryder, Sam, Mike, Kitty, Tina, Sugar, and Mercedes at the tiny cafe right outside the campus.

"It was kind of lame. You guys didn't miss out on much," Ryder said as he slung his arm around Kitty. It had taken almost three years, but Kitty had finally agreed to go out on one date with Ryder. Pretty soon after that, one date turned into two which turned into three, which turned into a whole bunch more. Ryder pretty much felt on top of the universe when Kitty finally agreed to be his girlfriend only a couple months ago.

"So we have to pick a date to all meet up back in Lima," Sam said, taking out his iPhone. "It's going to be hard, because Marley is going to New York, and Mercedes is going to LA."

"I'll make time to come back to Lima, I promise," Marley said. Mercedes nodded in agreement.

"I can't believe college is over," Mike said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Yeah, I don't think college would be as entertaining as it was if Marley hadn't shown up," Ryder laughed, earning a small shove from Kitty. Over the years, Kitty and Marley had grown super close.

"Shut up," Marley giggled.

"Hey, we should probably get going," Jake said after noticing the time. "Your plane boards in an hour."

A sad feeling settled in Marley's stomach as she stood up to hug her friends goodbye. As much as she wanted to go to New York, she didn't know if she was ready to leave her friends.

Kitty was the first one to hug her. "Call me every day, okay?" she said, making no effort to wipe the tears streaming down her face.

"I promise," Marley said as she pulled Kitty in a tight hug. Tina, Sugar, and Mercedes joined in too.

"Visit whenever you can," Tina said.

"I will," Marley said tearfully. As soon as the girls let go, she went over to the guys, who pulled her into a hug as well.

"We'll miss you, Matthew," Ryder joked.

Marley smiled and playfully shoved his arm. "Good times," she recalled.

"We'll see you soon, okay?" Sam said.

"Definitely." Marley nodded confidently. She said one last goodbye to her friends, and followed Jake out the door to his car.

* * *

"What was your goodbye to Unique and Brittany like?" Jake asked as they drove to the Lima airport.

"Lots and lots of crying," Marley said sadly. "I wish I could have said goodbye to them in person."

"Well, when you come back to visit, I'm sure you'll see them."

"Jake?" Marley asked after a couple minutes of comfortable silence.

"Yeah?"

"What if New York isn't for me? What if I don't fit in there?"

Jake quickly glanced at her, raising his eyebrow. "Are you crazy? Of course you're going to fit in. I promise, you'll love it there."

"How do you know?"

"Because you're meant to be an actress, and there's no better place to go than New York. Well, LA is good too, but I know New York is where you really want to go."

Marley just nodded, and remained quiet for the rest of the drive.

* * *

"Flight 749 to JFK is now boarding," said the voice over the loudspeaker.

Marley took a deep breath as she and Jake stood up from their chairs. Marley felt butterflies in her stomach as she made her way over to the gate. "I guess this is goodbye," she muttered.

Jake wordlessly pulled her into a very passionate kiss, not even slightly caring that they were making out in public. They broke apart soon after, and Marley gave Jake one last hug.

"Call me when you land, okay?" he said.

Marley nodded, unable to speak. Tears were rushing to her eyes, but she managed to blink them back. This was supposed to be a happy time. She was finally going to New York to experience her lifetime dream. Marley gave Jake one last wave before turning the corner, saying a final goodbye to Lima. Well, at least for now.

* * *

_**Four months later…**_

A couple months after moving to Manhattan, Marley decided to pursue graduate school at NYU. That meant, of course, that she would have to live in a dorm again, because she definitely couldn't afford an apartment from the little salary she got from working at Starbucks.

Graduate school was so much different than college. First of all, she had a single dorm, which she didn't really want, because she wanted to meet new people and at least make some friends. Even though she had been at NYU for about a month and half now, Marley still hadn't made any friends. She was pretty lonely here, and longed to go back to Ohio.

One late Sunday night, as Marley was in her room studying for her music history exam, someone knocked on her door.

Marley frowned, hesitating to answer it. No one ever knocked on her door. Who would, anyways? She barely knew anyone here. Nevertheless, she put down her notes and walked over to the door.

"Um, can I help you?" Marley asked, not really looking at whoever was at the door as she opened it up.

The person began to talk, speaking in a forced high-pitch tone. "Um, yes, hi. My name is, uh, Jade, and I'm your new roommate."

Marley stared into Jade's eyes for about a second, before her face broke into a huge grin. She could recognize those eyes anywhere. "Oh my god, Jake?" She screamed, running into his arms. "Why the hell are you dressed like this?"

Jake laughed. "I wanted to surprise you. And I thought, what better way to surprise you then how you surprised me?"

Marley giggled as she took a closer look at Jake's getup. He was wearing a curly blonde wig, a dress that she remembered seeing in Kitty's closet, and he had a whole bunch of makeup piled on his face.

"You look like a drag queen," Marley said, wiping a tear away from laughing so hard. "But seriously, what are you doing here?"

"I, uh, I kind of have a surprise for you," Jake said, fumbling with something in his dress pocket.

"What kind of surprise?" Marley asked skeptically.

"So I got a job a few months ago at one of the local restaurants as a waiter, and I got payed a good amount of money for it."

"Okay…" Marley nodded, urging him to go on.

"Well, I decided to use that money to put a down payment on an apartment here in New York for the both of us to live." Jake revealed what he was holding the pocket. It was a single brass key. He looked hopefully at his girlfriend, awaiting her expression.

Marley looked completely shocked. "Seriously?"

Jake nodded, his smile quickly fading. "You don't seem too happy about it, though. Are you-" Jake couldn't even finish his sentence due to Marley basically attacking him in a hug.

"Are you kidding? Of course I'm happy about it!" Marley exclaimed. "I've been wanting you to come here since the day I left Lima."

"Good, I'm glad." Jake grinned.

"I can't believe this!" Marley shouted joyously. "We're going to live together!"

"Well, technically we've lived together before," Jake pointed out.

"Yeah, but this is different," Marley said.

"I love you so much." Jake smiled as he took her hand in his. " I can't wait to start a new life with you."

Marley nodded. "I love you too. I'm so glad you're here."

Marley knew Jake would support her in New York no matter what happened with her acting career. Through the ups and downs she knew she would experience, he would always be there for her. Marley was certain that here in New York, she would have the best time of her life. Nothing would ever change that.

(And five years later, Marley made sure to thank her husband Jake in her winning speech at the Oscars.)

_The End._

* * *

**So I'm pretty sad this story is over. I had a really fun time writing it, and I hope you had a fun time reading it too. I'm planning on starting a new multi-chaptered Jarley fic soon, so keep your eyes out for that. Oh, and I just wanted to say, this is the last time I will be writing Kitty and Ryder as a couple. I actually pretty much ship Artie and Kitty now, so I'm sure they will make appearances here and there in my stories :) Anyways, I really really really hoped you enjoyed reading this story, and hopefully you guys will keep sticking with me as I continue to write more Jarley stories. Love you guys :)**


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